


Walpurgisnacht

by 50251sid



Category: The Borgias, The Borgias (2011)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Dream Sex, Explicit Sexual Content, F/M, Mildly Dubious Consent, Ritual Sex, Superstition, Witchcraft
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-02-22
Updated: 2014-02-26
Packaged: 2018-01-13 10:01:32
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,662
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1222108
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/50251sid/pseuds/50251sid
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>An ancient fertility festival is celebrated</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Superstitions

On New Year’s Eve, Juan Borgia met a virgin.

He had attended a friend’s party, where excessive drinking was both expected and encouraged. Guests had been invited to spend the night to free them from the constraints of having to stay sober enough to drive home.   Juan was taking full advantage of this courtesy. He had been drinking for several hours already when a new guest arrived at the door.

Through vodka-bleary eyes, he saw her enter, her blonde hair and petite figure instantly galvanizing his attention. He managed to lurch across the living room without falling on his face and introduced himself. Her name, she said, was Lucrezia Lanzoli, and she was eighteen years old. A friend of the host’s younger sister, she had dropped by to wish the family a happy new year. She intended to only stay for a few minutes before going home, having no desire to be on the road with the drunken drivers who were sure to be out, endangering the public welfare.

“But you could stay here tonight and be perfectly safe. Lots of us are sleeping over.”

He gave her his most engaging smile, which was exceptionally persuasive and usually successful. But she shook her head.

“I really need to leave soon. My parents will be worried if I’m out too late.”

“But if you go, I’ll never see you again. I couldn’t bear it.”

She scribbled on a cocktail napkin which she picked up from the coffee table.

“Here’s my phone number. Call me if you like.”

He pressed the napkin to his chest.

“I will call you tomorrow, without fail. Drive safely, and know that you take my heart with you.”

She laughed lightly.

 

“Hi, Lucrezia. It’s Juan. We met last night at Harry Nash’s party.”

“Of course. Hello, Juan. How nice of you to call.”

“Are you surprised?”

“Honestly, yes. And glad.”

“Can I see you today?”

“That would be lovely. But may I ask you to meet me somewhere rather than coming by my house?”

“Sure, but why?”

“Well, my parents have this silly superstition about the first visitor on New Year’s Day. It has to be a dark-haired man. A blonde or red-haired man or any woman at all is supposed to be bad luck. Although your red hair is beautiful, it would make my folks go batshit.”

_She likes my hair, he thought._

They had a pleasant get-acquainted conversation over coffee and cheesecake and then made plans for a dinner date the next night.

The saw each other all through January, growing closer.

On Ground Hog Day, February 2, sitting on a sofa in Lucrezia’s parents’ basement game room, Juan noted to her that the celebrated rodent from Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania had seen his shadow, indicating that winter would last for six more weeks.

“That means we will have to snuggle up tight to keep each other warm.”

He reached for her and began kissing her intimately, his hand searching for her breast.

She pushed him away.

“No, Juan. Don’t do that.”

“What? Why not? You know I care for you. I’ve been patient, but …”

“I made a vow to Saint Agnes when I was just a little girl that I would remain a virgin until I was married. It’s not the thing to do nowadays, I realize, but to me, a vow is a vow, and I intend to keep it. Juan, you are hot and have a great body. I really care for you too, and if I were going to have sex with anyone, it would be you. But I won’t, until I’m married.”

“You’re really serious about this?”

“That’s right.”

“But that seems so….so…arbitrary. And against nature.”

“Juan, I’m human. I have feelings. And desires. Believe me, it’s not easy to resist you. But I must. I promised Saint Agnes.”

“So are you really, really religious?”

“Not so much now, but as a kid, I was. I went to Catholic school and spent a lot of time in church. Sundays, Feast Days, stuff like that. I read all the tales about the saints and martyrs and felt close to Saint Agnes. She was just a little girl when she swore a vow of chastity. The Romans tried to get her to denounce her Christian faith by threatening to rape her if she didn’t accept a husband. The story was that God protected her by striking blind every man who tried to violate her. Finally, she was beheaded, but she died a virgin.”

“But she _did_ die! How was that protecting her? Wasn’t her life worth more than her chastity?”

“Not to the early Church fathers, I guess. I agree with you, but the church seemed to value dead virgins more than living wives. Regardless, I made a pledge. Love and sex are bound up together for me, and I don’t take either one lightly. So I will wait.”

“Then I guess I will have to as well.”

 

In March, Juan asked Lucrezia to marry him and she accepted. However, she refused his offer of an engagement ring.

“Meaningless. The wedding ring is what counts.”

“You’re an unusual one. Most women want a big rock to impress their friends with.”

“I’d rather impress them with my big hunk of a husband.”

“Well, how about the wedding?”

“Simple. Low key. Immediate family. I just want to be married to you. Better to spend money on a house.”

Juan was flattered, and his financial adviser was pleased.

 

“My grandparents were strictly old country in their customs and beliefs. They taught us all about Walpurgisnacht.”

“What is that?”

“Well, in many countries, the first day of May is occasion for a big celebration. The coming of spring, planting season, honoring the fertility of the earth, of livestock and of human beings. On the night before May Day, Walpurgisnacht, people tended to get crazy, drinking too much and running off into the woods to carry on with each other. All in the name of fertility. But witches and evil spirits were thought to go about on that night as well, so people would take precautions to safeguard their cattle and lit big bonfires to welcome spring. Anyway, I would kind of like to pay respects to my ancestors by getting married on Walpurgisnacht. For shits and giggles.”

“You don’t need to trivialize your desire to honor your heritage. I like the idea. Let’s do it. April 30. That doesn’t give us much time, though. We won’t be able to have a church wedding.”

“We can do that later on, if you want. But I really don’t want to miss Walpurgisnacht.”

“A civil ceremony will be fine with me. Just so it’s official.”

 

“Lucrezia, meet my brother, Cesare.”

Cesare was kind of scary. Taller than Juan, forceful, brooding, radiating an electricity like a force field that both attracted and repelled. Heartstoppingly beautiful, with long, dark hair, astounding hazel eyes and a cleft chin amid a rakishly attractive beard stubble. His smile projected more menace than warmth, but his voice was velvety, caressing to the ear. He took Lucrezia’s small hand and riveted her with his intense gaze. While he regarded her, the rest of the world faded away. She stared up at him, unable to speak.

“Lucrezia,” he murmured. “We meet at last. I like that you chose Walpurgisnacht as your wedding day. Has Juan told you that our grandmother was considered a witch back in the Old Country?”

“A witch? Really?”

Juan interrupted.

“She was a healer. She knew about herbal cures. That qualified her as a witch among some ignorant peasants.”

“Tell all, Juan. She also cast spells, invoked curses, made love potions.”

“Silly superstitions. Don’t be giving Lucrezia the wrong idea about Grandma.”

 

Lucrezia was awakened by a blinding white light coming from her bedroom doorway. She squinted, shielding her eyes from the glare, and made out a dark figure gliding towards her from the center of the glow, from what appeared to be a triangle of mist. The figure was elongated like an El Greco painting, with luminous bands of color like halos or rainbows surrounding its head. The light suddenly vanished as the shape approached her bed, leaving her in profound darkness. She sought to scream but her throat constricted and she could make no sound. Long, graceful, masculine fingers caressed her face, imparting an air of serenity that inexplicably calmed her. She reclined back onto her pillows and the shadowy hands continued to stroke her cheeks and throat, then moved down to her breasts. She wanted to sit up, to resist, but found herself so sapped of strength that she could not move. The hands separated, one remaining on her breast and the other working its way down her body, where a warm palm caressed gentle circles on her belly and then pushed her nightgown up to her waist.

“Who are you? Why are you doing this?” she whispered.

The dark figure put a finger to her lips to quiet her. The tender caresses continued. Both hands were now stroking her thighs, gently parting them. She struggled against her own lassitude to grasp the hands and pull them away, but both of her wrists were imprisoned in an iron grip while one large hand found its way to the warmth between her legs. Two fingers began to rub her clitoris and she moaned in surprised pleasure. As she grew wetter and her breathing grew faster, the fingers increased the tempo of their stroking, very quickly taking her to ecstasy. While she writhed in her passion, the figure released her wrists, bent over her and kissed her lips, then quickly retreated and was gone.

Was this a dream? It had to be. Trembling, Lucrezia touched herself. She had never experienced such intense feelings before, had never been so overwhelmed. She was sticky and wet. What had happened to her?

Exhausted by the surfeit of sensations, she dropped off to benumbed sleep.


	2. Nocturnal Missions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wherein nocturnal visits are paid

In the light of the morning, Lucrezia was sure that the strange visitation of the night before had been a dream. That was the only possible explanation.

She went through the day lackluster and enervated, unable to concentrate. She told her mother that she thought she may be coming down with a virus and went to bed early.

When the white light appeared in her doorway, she tried to get up from her bed to flee, but was frozen in place. The dark form took possession of her body again, caressing her, this time pushing her nightgown up to her neck, baring her body entirely. He stroked her to orgasm, kissed her lips and disappeared.

The same dream two nights in a row? It couldn’t be, could it? Three nights in a row was worrisome. After the fourth night, she consulted a psychologist.

“Lucrezia, sexual anxiety often manifests itself in dreams. You say you’re a virgin and you’re about to be married. Are you fearful of the wedding night?”

“I don’t think so. I mean, I think I’m okay with married sex, and Juan, my fiancée, is a decent man. I’m not afraid of sex with him, I don’t think.”

“You don’t sound too convincing, Lucrezia. Let’s talk some more of your feelings about sex.”

 

She left the office of the psychologist with more questions than answers and an appointment for a follow-up visit the next week.

 

Her dream visitor continued to come to her, his attentions growing bolder, but never intruding inside her body. Nor would he permit her to do other than passively receive his caresses. If she overtly reached for him or responded too strongly, he would stop her, gently but unequivocally. He would give her an intense orgasm, kiss her tenderly and vanish.

_He obviously wants to leave me intact, she thought._

The psychologist suggested fears of sin and divine retribution.  

The visitor conjured up voluptuous lust and delicious abandon.

 

Lucrezia flipped the calendar page to April.

 

The marriage ceremony would be very simple. Juan and Lucrezia would exchange vows at a hotel in the presence of only Cesare and Lucrezia’s parents, Sofia and Charles. A Justice of the Peace would preside. They would then all have dinner together at the hotel's restaurant and everyone would spend the night. In the morning, the newlyweds would leave for their honeymoon.

Juan made the travel arrangements and lined up a Justice of the Peace to perform the ceremony. They applied for a marriage license. Lucrezia still needed to choose a wedding ring.

 

Juan phoned Lucrezia.

“Sorry, honey. I’m running late at work, so would you mind if Cesare picks you up and takes you to the jewelry store? I’ll meet you there.”

Lucrezia tried to hide her dismay.

“Cesare? Well, couldn’t we maybe go another time?”

“We really have to do this now, Lucrezia. The ring may need to be sized for you, and that takes time. Cesare said he’d be glad to pick you up.”

“I just…well…he kind of makes me feel uncomfortable, Juan. I’m not really sure why.”

“You don’t need to be afraid of him, honey. He likes you. He’s fascinated by your virginity.”

“You told him I’m a virgin? _Juan_!”

“Well, he’s my big brother. He looks out for me. I tell him everything. We share everything.”

“Everything? What do you mean _everything_?”

Juan laughed.

“Well, everything within reason. Why not take this opportunity to get to know Cesare a bit better? You will be part of each other’s lives, after all.”

“I guess so.”

“Great. Cesare will pick you up at 6:30. I’ll be along as soon as I can.”

 

During the drive to the jewelry store, Cesare was unusually talkative and smiling.

“Tell me more about your grandmother, the witch, Cesare.”

“Well, she really was a witch. She taught her arts to us. Juan didn’t take to it, but I was enthralled.”

“Do you practice witchcraft?”

“I respect its power.”

“Is that what gives you such a powerful personality?”

“Me? Do you think so? You may not be aware of this, but your vow of chastity lends you an aura of great power.”

She blushed.

“Juan shouldn’t have told you about that. It’s very personal.”

“Don’t be shy. Be proud of it. To make a vow and then live your life bound by it…well, that’s extraordinary. I admire you.”

Cesare’s fascinating hazel eyes glowed as he and Lucrezia inspected the shop’s window display.

“Look here, Lucrezia. How do you like this set?”

He pointed to an enormous, glittering diamond solitaire in platinum with a simple matching wedding band.

“It’s gorgeous, but… well, I like the plain band. That’s all I really want.”

“You should have something dazzling. Something as beautiful and extraordinary as you are.”

She blushed.

“Why, Cesare! How sweet of you to say. But I really just want something simple. Juan knows that.”

“He must do better for you than that. You’re a rare jewel yourself.”

Lucrezia chose a plain yellow gold band, although Cesare shook his head in disapproval.

 

On the night of April 29, her spectral visitor arrived as usual and stroked her naked body. While she was caught up in the pleasure his hand was giving her, the shadow figure knelt on the bed between her thighs and pressed something cylindrical and hard against her belly. She sensed rhythmic movement and then felt a surge of warm wetness flooding over her body. Dark hands spread the sticky wetness over her breasts and belly. When the visitor bent over her and kissed her, she felt his lips trembling.

When she awoke the next morning, her body bore a peculiar and unfamiliar scent.


	3. Rites of Spring

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Wherein our tale comes to a conclusion

Juan slipped the plain gold band onto Lucrezia’s finger and the Justice of the Peace pronounced them husband and wife. Her parents, tearful and smiling, kissed the couple. Cesare, towering over Lucrezia, bent and pressed his lips to hers, lingering a moment longer than she expected. Involuntarily, her lips opened beneath his, surrendering to a fierce hunger she felt emanating from him. She broke away, confused, her eyes searching his impassive face.

Surely she was imagining things.

During dinner, Lucrezia and her mother talked excitedly about Maui, Sofia recalling the happy week she and her husband had spent there three years previously. Juan poured champagne all around and proposed a toast. Cesare brought his glass to his lips but did not drink. Lucrezia could feel his gaze on her almost as a physical caress. Bewildered, she turned away from him.

Before dinner was over, Lucrezia felt overcome with weariness.

“Maybe it’s the champagne and the excitement. I just can’t seem to stay awake. Forgive me.”

Charles and Sophia were also yawning. Cesare escorted them to their room. Juan caught Lucrezia by her waist and guided her to the elevator.

 

Her head reeled. She could not focus.

She was in a darkened room, illuminated only by the light of a single candle. She shivered with chill, as she was naked, lying uncovered on a bed with smooth, cool sheets.

Juan’s face swam before her, elongated like an El Greco. He extinguished the candle with his moistened fingertips.

“What’s happening? Where am I?”

Had she said that, or merely thought it?

Juan was standing beside the bed on which she lay. He bent over and kissed her. His hands stroked her breasts and trailed down between her legs. She moaned and covered his hand with hers, pressing down hard and pulsing her hips with each stroke of his fingers.

“Take me, take me,” she whispered.

She tried to push his fingers inside of her, but he would not let her. He continued to tease her, getting her more and more wet and eager.

A blinding light assaulted her delirious eyes. She turned her head in the direction from which it came and saw, emerging from an apparent triangle of mist, a figure whose head was surrounded by halos of colored lights. The dark shape appeared to float towards her, clad in a long black robe, his eyes like burning coals in a pale countenance. The light extinguished, leaving only inky darkness.

Juan spoke quietly.

“I have prepared her. She’s ready for you.”

Without a word, the dark figure untied the robe and dropped it to the floor, revealing the outline of a long, nude body. He sat down on the bed beside Lucrezia, grasped her ankles and pushed her legs up, causing her knees to bend and her thighs to open. The dark visitor knelt between her legs. She felt his hand caressing her, pleasing her. He replaced his hand with his cock, rubbing it over her clitoris, mingling their fluids. Then he pushed inside of her in one quick thrust. She hissed from the burning pain he caused her, but it was over in an instant. He leaned forward, looming over her, propping himself up on extended forearms so he could look at her face as he claimed her. She began to moan and embraced the figure covering her, pulling him down onto her. She met his belly with her own. He began kissing her throat, and when he sucked her skin hard enough to leave a bruise, she cried out, rocking her body against him as fireworks burst in her head. He held her tightly as her orgasm shook her.

“Oh, my love…my beautiful Cesare…Cesare…”

_She knew._

He grinned and resumed his hard thrusts, coming very quickly, hurling his semen into her so hard that she jumped with surprise. Satiated, exalted, he kissed her eyelids and her cheeks and her parted lips. He remained inside her until she descended into slumber, then withdrew gently and rose from the bed. Juan draped the robe around his brother’s shoulders.

“I’m not sure about the drug in the champagne, Cesare. Lucrezia moves in and out of consciousness.”

“I didn’t want her completely insensible. I wanted her able to consent. Her parents will sleep soundly until morning. I saw to that.”

“How?”

“One of Grandma’s secrets.”

“Was she to your satisfaction, Cesare?”

“She was. You made the perfect choice.”

“What will she remember?”

“What I want her to remember.”

“Are you done with her now? May I have my bride back?”

“By no means. I hope you have not grown too fond of her, for I intend to keep her for my own. Today she married _Cesare_ Borgia.”

“How can that be?”

“Anything is possible under the spell of Walpurgis. The legal documents have been altered. The memories of those concerned have been altered. And she has conceived by me.”

“Are you sure of that?”

“The ritual ensures it. My child is in her. She is mine.”

An unreadable expression flitted across Juan’s face for the smallest fraction of a second.

“Could you not have found your own woman? Do you have to take Lucrezia from me?”

“I wish I had met her before you did. I don’t enjoy causing you pain. But she is my chosen.”

Juan closed his eyes and sighed in resignation.

“I understand, Brother. Then may I now find a woman of my own?”

“You’ve done well. Go with my thanks and be happy with a woman of your choosing.”

Juan bowed and left the room.

Cesare turned back to Lucrezia’s inert form and drew the blankets over her. Casting off his dark robe, he got into bed beside her and enfolded her in his arms. A platinum wedding band gleamed on his left ring finger.

 

Lucrezia awoke the next morning with a pounding headache. Disoriented, she looked around her, trying to make sense of her surroundings.

Oh! The hotel room. She was married yesterday. On her left hand, an enormous, glittering diamond wedding set sparkled. She raised the blanket covering her and blushed to realize that she was naked. How much champagne had she drunk? She reached out and touched the bare back of her sleeping bridegroom, who stirred, sighed and turned over to greet her.

“Good morning, Wife.”

“Cesare, my darling…”


End file.
